Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – During the first three years of his prep career Landon Green picked up a few tips on what it takes to excel as a three-sport athlete.

Among the biggest keys to multi-sport success is something that Green has actually had little experience with during his days at West High.

Rest.

“I would say having good recovery, getting your rest is the biggest thing,” Green said. “Rest and recovery are big because if you are injured you can’t perform at your best.”

Green knows the importance of rest he just hasn’t had much of it while bouncing from sport to sport during an impressive senior year.

During the fall Green was a first-team all-state defensive lineman leading West High in tackles, tackles for loss and sacks.

He compiled a 38-11 record on the wrestling mat this winter finishing sixth at the Class 4A state tournament last month at 220 pounds.

After picking up his first state wrestling medal Green followed his own prescription and got some rest.

Now the defending Class 4A state shot put champion in ready to put the finishing touches on a standout career with a big senior straight season.  

“I took a week off of lifting, I did a few drills to keep up with track but I’m feeling good now,” Green said. “I’m ready for this now.”

Green isn’t just a three-sport athlete or a starter in all three sports he is competing at an elite level in three sports that run in successive seasons.

It takes a special athlete to compete at that level for ten consecutive months.

Following elite seasons in football and wrestling that is what Green is attempting to do during track and field season this spring.

“Number one he has a great makeup, nothing scares him, nothing intimidates him he wants to go through challenges as much as anyone else and he uses all the sports to benefit himself,” West High track and field coach TJ Craig said. “He is the perfect kid honestly to call a multi-sport athlete because he can do all those things and he likes the challenge.”

All three sports that Green competes in take a different set of skills.

Yet Green says there are specific elements that he has taken from each of the sports that have helped to make him successful.  

“The biggest thing I learned from football is leadership and it’s a team sport so you have to be a good leader and wrestling you gain so much mental toughness from that sport as well as footwork and things like that,” Green said. “Track is all about explosiveness so all of them have their benefits. I would say wrestling is one of the best to learn that mental toughness and I think that’s been a huge reason why I’ve been successful.”

Green was a varsity performer I wrestling as a sophomore and football as a junior but his breakthrough to the elite level came in track and field last May when he won the 4A shot put title.

His toss of 58-5 at the state meet broke the West High school record and was more than a foot better than runner-up Logan Jones of Council Bluffs Lewis Central.

“To be honest I completely surprised myself,” Green said. “I started out rotating and it was going slow because it takes a lot of form and then I started gliding again and it just popped. Once I started going it was pretty fun.”

The state title from Green helped West High to a runner-up team finish in Class 4A and started a string of excellence for Green that cross over to other sports as a senior.

“It’s been really fun,” Green said. “It’s been a great experience for me.”

Part of that success Green insists is due to rest.

Though he doesn’t get much of it Green takes advantage of his down time whenever possible, a trick he learned from past West High lineman and throwers like Alex Kleinow and Jonathan Gannon.

“Recovery, sleep, eating well, rolling out all those little things add up and keep your body healthy through the seasons,” Green said. “Freshman and sophomore year you feel good all the time, your junior and senior year you have to really focus on all those little things.”

Green wants nothing more than to end his career with a little more hardware.

“I always want to continue to grow so to have a team title or another state title or a Drake title on my end would be amazing,” Green said.

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